Thoughts From Last Night...

Fitz and The Tantrums :: Roseland Theater :: 06.23.14

by Yume Delegato,posted Jun 25 2014 10:37AM

It is a commonly accepted axiom in Portland that it's hard, if not impossible, to top a December To Remember show. However, apparently Fitz and The Tantrums didn't get the memo, because they did their level best to disprove that saying on Monday night - and they succeeded.

Although they were both crowd favorites, Fitz's two openers were about as disparate as you can get. Los Angeles indie-pop group HOLYCHILD started the evening off with a vaguely retro-sounding, super poppy set. Although the band has a good sound, their set was pretty uneven - when lead singer Liz Nistico stays within her range, she sounds great, but whenever she strays outside her register (or tries to rap), she has a tendency to veer painfully off-key.

I could level no such criticism about the second opening act, however. Austin singer Max Frost played a pitch-perfect, genre-bending set that combined indie pop, neo soul, a couple of other influences that I couldn't quite place. In the space of one song, Frost's music will make you think of everything from Jamiroquai to Alt J to Foster The People. Perhaps the most apt comparison, though, would be the latter band's lead singer, Mark Foster - although their styles are completely different, Max Frost displays the same level of energy and showmanship as the other M.F.

Neither opener could hold a candle to Fitz and The Tantrums, however. Although their first song (Get Away) started out slowly, that was the last low key moment of the show; by the time the song ended, they had worked the crowd into a screaming, cheering frenzy that only intensified during classics such as "Don't Gotta Work It Out," "Break The Walls" and "Breakin' the Chains of Love."

Midway through the show, singers Michael Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs issued their usual edict to the crowd (the majority of whom were seeing Fitz for the first time) about audience participation, before leading the crowd in a call-and-response cover of The Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)." They eventually closed out the night with a barn-burner of an encore, ending with "Moneygrabber" (complete with confetti cannons) and "The Walker."

A band that can get the entire audience to clap and sing along to one or two songs? That's impressive. A band that can get the entire audience to clap and sing along to EVERY song? That's Fitz and The Tantrums.